India Supreme Court Restrains Meta From Sharing WhatsApp User Data

The Supreme Court of India restrained WhatsApp from sharing user data with its parent company, Meta Platforms Inc., during hearings on February 3, 2026. Chief Justice Surya Kant characterized the company's 2021 "take-it-or-leave-it" privacy policy as a "decent way of committing theft of private information" and a "mockery of constitutionalism." The court expressed concern that the complex language of the policy creates "manufactured consent," which commercially exploits users, particularly those in rural areas with limited digital literacy.

These proceedings follow a ₹213.14 crore penalty imposed by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) for abusing market dominance. While the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal upheld the fine in November 2025, it had set aside a ban on sharing data for advertising purposes. The Supreme Court rejected arguments that users can simply opt out, citing Meta's market monopoly and asserting that users effectively pay for the service with their data.

As an interim measure, the court ordered WhatsApp to stop sharing user information with Meta and impleaded the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology as a party to the case. Meta and WhatsApp were directed to file affidavits explaining their data-sharing mechanisms. The court warned that Meta should leave India if it cannot adhere to the country's constitutional framework. Hearings were adjourned on February 9, 2026, and rescheduled for February 23, 2026, to consider a cross-appeal by the CCI challenging the prior decision to allow data sharing for advertising.